In today’s modern-day business environment, the technology solutions your
company invests in are managed either internally or externally.
Smart Business sat down with Bill
Reichman, vice president of information
systems for AIT Worldwide Logistics, to
find out why he prefers the former over
the latter.
Do companies today place enough emphasis
on technology?
That depends on the company’s outlook on the importance and value of
technology. If your company regards
technology as something you absolutely
have to have in order to be in business,
then you are likely viewing your IT solutions as more of a customer expectation
or business requirement rather than a
competitive point of differentiation for
your business. Essentially, you are more
inclined or conditioned to be interested
in cost justification or short-term benefits rather than the value of the long-term
investment in technologies.
Alternatively, if your company takes a
proactive stance in truly putting technology at the forefront of your business, then
you are opting to use that technology to
drive your business. In order to maximize
on your technology resources, it’s far
more beneficial to have an in-house IT
team as opposed to outsourcing one.
What are the main advantages and disadvantages to having an in-house IT team?
Quite simply, having an in-house IT team
cultivates enhanced control over technologies — both implementing and sustaining it. If your company were dependent on an outsourced IT company, then
you are at the mercy of its schedule. To
your company’s detriment, you are subject to much longer turnaround times
according to its priorities and timelines.
With an in-house team, you can direct and
devote your resources anytime and anywhere you choose based on your own set
of terms and priorities. The control is in
your hands — you can measure the output as well as dictate the deadlines.
There is, however, a risk factor associated with having an in-house team: While an
imperative investment, educating and
training employees on emerging and
updated technologies is a costly one. You
could potentially spend thousands of dollars training an employee only to have him
or her walk out the door.
But when recognizing the importance of
maintaining and managing the control
over various technologies under one roof,
it’s critical to have an in-house team and
worth that risk in the long run.
How can an in-house IT team make technology a competitive point of differentiation for
your business?
When you put yourself in the position
where you view technology as one of your
company’s strongest competitive points
of differentiation, then you must be able
to adapt and react quickly in order to
accommodate the massive changes, project requests and demands of your customers in today’s ever-changing information climate — an in-house team makes
this possible.
With an in-house team, you are also less
likely to undermine and/or overlook the
capabilities and advantages in terms of
how technologies can be used to
improve job efficiencies, workflow, business processes and overall employee
productivity.
Furthermore, having an in-house team
facilitates a stronger link between your
company’s business group and technology group. Under this management structure, meetings of strategic business
importance often always include a representative from the IT team. By reinforcing your company’s commitment to technology, you are also underpinning the
collective goals and visions of your
organization.
The technology is not a marginalized
sector of your business; rather, it
becomes a product of your company’s
offerings. For instance, at AIT, we’re
proud to say that we’re not just in the
freight-forwarding business, but we’re
also in the IT business.
How does an in-house team contribute to
employee retention?
A thriving corporate culture and positive work environment makes it possible
to invest in training and educating your
employees because you as an employer
enjoy a certain level of confidence that
they won’t leave the company the first
chance they get. Similarly, that particular
employee truly feels like he or she is an
asset to the team and is empowered to
come to work every day, roll up his or her
sleeves and contribute to the overall success of the company.
Essentially, it’s mutually beneficial in
that it facilitates and fosters positive
employer-employee relationships and
places increased emphasis on the human
element of the IT business. At the end of
the day, it’s always going to be about the
people running the technologies and not
vice versa.
BILL REICHMAN is vice president of information systems for AIT Worldwide Logistics. Spanning numerous nationwide locations and
an ever-increasing network of international partnerships, the global transportation and logistics provider delivers tailored solutions for a
wide variety of vertical markets and industries. Reach him at www.aitworldwide.com or (800) 669-4AIT.